


Safe Haven

by cecania



Series: A Tale of Two Cousins [1]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-08
Updated: 2015-10-08
Packaged: 2018-04-25 11:02:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4957936
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cecania/pseuds/cecania
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He never wanted to be Inquisitor and he certainly didn’t want any of the responsibilities that came with it. He can barely handle his own life and now he’s responsible for the lives of all of Thedas? No pressure.</p>
<p>She didn’t want to have anything to do with the mages, let alone be put in charge of them. She knows better than anyone how spoiled and whiny they can be. But after twenty years apart, she wants to spend as much time with her cousin as she possible can so she can’t say no.</p>
<p>A somewhat retelling of Inquisition with two Trevelyans instead of one.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Safe Haven

**Author's Note:**

> So this is the start of the canon au that me and Luci/magisteramell/buckybarrow essentially started out with forever ago. The one where her Ionas is the Inquisitor and my Elora is Knight-Enchater of the Inquisition. It’s going to be updated sporadically simply because I have so many things I’m working on right now I don’t know how much time I can dedicate to this one as well. But the beginning needs to at least be out there to answer some major questions about the cousin.

 

            “I know you’re busy but you have a problem that can be easily solved.”

            Ionas sighed deeply and looked down the stairs at Dorian. The mage was standing at the base of them, looking up at him expectantly. “I was supposed to be in the war council ten minutes ago,” he said tiredly. For another round of yelling at him about the mages no doubt. It seemed like no matter what he did, someone was always upset about it.

           Cullen had been pissed that he’d sided with the mages, Cassandra hadn’t liked that he’d allied with them. Cullen didn’t want them to have free run of the camp, everyone had their damn opinion on the matter and he was almost done with it. He’d never asked for this responsibility, still wasn’t sure what he’d even been doing at the Conclave. He was starting to wonder if he should have walked away from the Inquisition when it formed, their protection be damned. If the constant headache and people yelling at him was the trade off, he’d almost prefer death.

            But he could never leave people in need of help and since he was the only one with the ability to close the rifts…he was stuck.

            “Just a few more minutes and you can have an answer for your council. At least where the mages are concerned.”

            “Dorian,” Ionas sighed, shaking his head. “I don’t have time for-”

            “You need a leader for your mages, someone that wasn’t associated with the mess with Alexius and I know just the person. She’s Circle trained like the rest of them but she’s got a good head on her shoulders.”

            “Dorian, the mages have a leader, Fiona. She was Grand Enchanter before all of this happened, she’s their leader.”

            Dorian shook his head. “No, Ionas. Many of the mages aren’t happy with what happened in Redcliffe and I don’t blame them. Being sold into Tevinter slavery will do that to people. Most are blaming Fiona for that, for what happened in Redcliffe and simply since they need to point the finger at someone to make themselves feel better. Because of that they’re looking for someone else to lead them and with your support I have the perfect candidate.”

            Rubbing a hand over his face, Ionas felt another headache coming on. He didn’t want to deal with this. “Why should I have any say in who becomes the next leader of the mages?” he asked tiredly.

            “Because you’re the one that saved them. They’ll listen to you, Fiona will listen to you.”

            He didn’t feel right, booting someone from their position and taking their title away from them. Of course with the Circles fallen, Grand Enchanter did mean nothing. But the mages had still followed her and nearly to their ruin. “I can’t just walk up to them and tell them to pick a new leader.”

            “Actually you can. You brought them into the Inquisition as allies, I know, but you’re their saviour right now and they’re going to listen to anything you have to say regarding their future.” Dorian paused. “And you don’t have to tell them outright, you can just throw your support behind a name and they’ll all see she’s the right choice.”

            “How do you know that?” Ionas demanded irritably. He liked Dorian, the man was sharp with his wit and intelligent to boot, but Ionas’ dreams had been plagued with a castle overrun with red lyrium and friends dying when they never should have. He wasn’t sleeping well and his days since getting back to Haven had been filled with nothing but shouting matches over the war table about his decisions in Redcliffe. He hadn’t been able to get out of the town to do anything because someone kept demanding his attention and all he wanted was out. He needed it.

            “Because you weren’t the only one helping me to thwart the plot going on in Redcliffe. She risked her life passing me information from the castle that Felix couldn’t because he couldn’t get close enough to the Southern mages. She knew what was happening wasn’t what the mages wanted and did everything in her power to keep them safe but there was only so much she could do. But she’s a talented girl and the mages will listen to her.”

            “Then why hasn’t she come forward? If she’s as great as you say, why hasn’t she stepped forward to pull the mages into line?”

            “Because she doesn’t have the power to just take over and as much as what Fiona did infuriates her, she respects the woman. Her manners are too well ingrained for her to just up and abandon them.”

            “Why would my support change any of that?”

            “Because then she wouldn’t have a choice but to look at the title, to look at what she needs to do for the mages. Ionas, you must trust me on this. Can you trust me again?”

            Ionas stared at him, the words ringing in his ears and tossing him back to another time the mage had talked to him about trust.

_Standing his ground as the light flared in front of him, Ionas felt his stomach flop as the earth seemed to disappear from under his feet. He was sure he heard cries around him but they all faded as fast they came. Everything just disappeared as the light claimed everything. His vision wavered, pain singing through his skull and the whisper of giving in, of letting go, filled him._

_It wouldn't be so hard to do. It wasn't like anyone was waiting for him. He wasn't anybody and if he let go who could blame him? He hadn't asked for any of this. He couldn't even remember why he had been at the Conclave to begin with. There was no reason to-_

_Something seized his arm, power and anger in it as magic flooded him. It drove away the whispers, drove away the blinding light, drove away the pain. No that was a lie; it made it worse. Gasping harshly, Ionas stumbled, one hand flinging out to try to steady himself. His gloved palm smacked against a stone wall and he staggered into it._

_Sucking in a breath, Ionas tried to get his lungs to work with him but they seemed to have seized up like the rest of him. Shudders ran from head to toe as he tried to stay upright. His knees were weak, his head light and...he was soaked from the waist down._

_Looking down, Ionas frowned when he saw he was standing waist deep in water. He'd just been in the main hall of Redcliffe castle. Where in the Void was he now?_

_"Well, that was interesting."_

_Dark eyes slid toward the sound of the voice and he stared at the man nearby. "Interesting?" he repeated._

_"Can you think of another word?" he asked dryly._

_Dorian. Dorian Pavus, that was the man's name. They'd met in the Redcliffe Chantry barely two weeks ago and somehow he had convinced Ionas to help him free the Mages from whatever was going on here. Of course the presence of the Tevinter Magister made things tricky and Ionas trusted this Vint about as far as he could throw him. He was too smooth, too easy going. There was too much going on and Ionas felt like he was being led around like a child. And Dorian's attitude was not helping matters._

_"I'll take your silence as a no. Where do you suppose we-"_

_“Blood of the Elder One!”_

_"What are you doing here?!"_

_Both men snapped around, staring at the pair of men in armour glaring at them from across the room. It alarmed Ionas slightly how easily they both fell into step, his bow coming up with an arrow already notched and Dorian's staff flaring with magic before it was even fully in his hands._

_The guards reacted slower and it might have saved their lives. Ionas released the arrow without a thought as he took a step away from Dorian, lessening the giant target they made. All it made the guards do was split up, one for each of them. That was fine with him._

_He took more steps back, arrows sinking into armour and slowing the guard down. His gaze never wavered from his target and when the man took a step forward, great sword raised to remove his head from his shoulders, he reacted._

_Leaping to the side, Ionas rolled through the water, remembering to close his eyes and mouth at the last second. He came up a few feet away from the guard and quickly notched three arrows. Each one sunk in harder than the last, the topmost finding a new home in the small spot between helm and armour._

_The gurgle that left the guard let Ionas knew he was done and he spun to face the other with an arrow ready. He lowered his bow slowly when he saw the man sinking to the floor, sliding under the water._

_Letting out a long breath, Ionas pushed his wet hair out of his face and slid his arrow back into his quiver. Great, now he was completely soaked and it was cold and dank wherever they were. And he wasn't going to start on the smell. "Well, fancy fingers," Ionas said shortly, "any idea where we are?"_

_"Oh that's the easy part," Dorian said confidently. "Redcliffe castle."_

_Eyeing him warily, he really didn't want to ask. He wasn't going to ask. It would be feeding the man's ego and, in the short time Ionas had known him, that was not something that needed to be done. "What's the hard part?" he asked finally, throwing caution to the wind for a moment._

_"This probably wasn’t what Alexius intended,” he said, looking around for a moment. “The rift must have moved us…to what? The closest confluence of arcane energy?”_

_“Want to explain that again?” Ionas said mildly, shaking out his hands to try to get rid of the water clinging to his gloves. “With smaller words for us non-magical types.”_

_Dorian’s gaze came back to him, a small quirk to his mouth. “Smaller words then,” he agreed, ignoring the look Ionas gave him. “What’s the last thing you remember?”_

_“We were in the main hall of the castle. With Alexius and the others.”_

_“Well, we’re still in the castle,” Dorian explained, “clearly the dungeons, fancy that, but-Oh! Of course! It’s not simply where-it’s when!”_

_A sick feeling crawled up Ionas' spine. "Excuse me?" he asked, his voice dropping._

_“Alexius used the amulet as focus. It moved us through time!”_

_Ionas stared at him, that sick feeling spreading through the rest of him. “Moved us through time,” he repeated tightly. “That isn’t possible.”_

_“Normally I would agree. Obviously Alexius has taken his research to exciting new heights. We’ve seen his temporal rifts before. This time we simply…passed through one.”_

_Breathing slowly, Ionas stared hard at him. This was not happening. This was not happening. Travelling through time was a gimmick in horribly written stories that he had never been able to finish because of that element. The very thought of it was enough to make his skin crawl just from reading it; to think that it had actually happened to him, that he may very well be in the past or the future._

_“Let’s look around, see where the rift took us. Then we can figure out how to get back…if we can.”_

_Ionas snapped into motion, his hands wrapping around the front of Dorian’s coat and hauling him forward. “What do you mean?” he said through clenched teeth. “If we can?”_

_“I worked with him when it was all theoretical. I’m not even sure when we are, much less how to get back,” Dorian said, frowning at him. “Would you kindly let go?”_

_Shaking him sharply, it was all he could do not to bare his teeth at him. “I’ll let go when you start to make sense!”_

_“I can hardly make sense when I’m uncertain of what exactly happened!”_

_“You’re the mage! You helped him research this! How do you not know what’s happened!” Ionas shouted, shaking him again._

_“Because I walked away before he got to anything like this. It was never supposed to be like this!” Dorian insisted._

_“How was it supposed to be? Why would you even look into time magic in the first place? Why would anyone want to look into it?” The questions kept coming, tumbling over one another as Ionas shook him. He couldn’t stop. This wasn’t right. This was completely unnatural. He had no issues with magic, but this? This wasn’t magic, it was completely unnatural and should never have happened._

_“Herald,” Dorian said sharply. “Stop! I’m hardly likely to figure it out while you’re shaking me like this! At this rate, you’re liable to shake every thought I’ve ever had out of my head and how will that help us?”_

_“You’re not helping us!” Ionas snapped. “You’re helping yourself and your silly spell that never should have existed in the first place!”_

_“Ionas, control yourself! This is getting us nowhere and right now we only have each other to rely on!”_

_Ionas’ fists tightened in the cloth, his panic overriding his rage and keeping him from thinking straight. He had been through several things since being shoved into the role of Herald, the undead, the animals, everything he had spent his entire life hating and fearing. But this…this was completely beyond everything that he could tolerate, everything that he could stomach._

_“Ionas,” Dorian repeated, one hand closing around Ionas’ wrist. “Ionas, take a breath. I know this isn’t what you wanted. It isn’t what any of us wanted, but we need to stay calm if we are to get back.”_

_“You said if!”_

_“There are several factors at work, but all we need is a bit more information and I’m sure I can get us back. I promise you that I will do everything in my power to get us back.”_

_Ionas stared at him, panic still surging through him. This wasn’t what was supposed to happen. He hadn’t known what to expect when he’d chosen to approach the mages for help but this wasn’t it._

_“Deep breaths, Herald,” Dorian coaxed. “I’m not going to be able to do much if you pass out on me. I need you.”_

_It was almost impossible for him to take a full breath, his entire focus on shaking some real answers out of the fancy mage. He would get some truth out of him, he needed answers and this was the only way he was going to get them._

_“Ionas,” Dorian said quietly. “Breathe.”_

_How?! They were stranded in the future with no real way to get back or any knowledge of where they actually were. How was it even possible to be calm or focused when they were lost? He jerked slightly when a hand pressed to his chest and he felt heat in the touch through his clothes._

_“Breathe, Ionas,” Dorian repeated. “Just breathe.”_

_The breath he took was anything but deep and left him reeling more than steadying him. But it was a start and he managed to take another, then another, then one more. The panic was still there, humming and coiling under his skin, but it wasn’t controlling him. “You can get us back?” Ionas rasped, his voice shot._

_“I will do my utmost to do that,” he assured him._

_It was hard, but Ionas got his hands to slowly let go of Dorian. He was right, shaking him wasn’t going to help and it really didn’t help Ionas feel better. There were better things for him to focus on and if he could figure them out, he’d be able to push the time travel to the back of his mind. His skin was still crawling and he felt like vomiting but…. “What do we need to do?” he asked, taking a step back and losing the warm touch._

_“If we are in Redcliffe castle, we should try to find the main hall again. Alexius will be there if he’s still here and we might find your friends.”_

_Ionas’ stomach cramped. Cassandra and Blackwall. Were they here somewhere? “Past or future?”_

_“My money would be on future. The past wouldn’t be good because then there would be two of you Heralds running around. Which is the exact opposite of everything your enemy would want. But pluck you from the timeline and cast you into a future where you have no power? That would make more sense.”_

_Keeping his mouth shut seemed like a good idea right now. Breathing hard through his nose, Ionas turned away from the mage and stared at the men they had killed. Their helms were of the Venatori, that cult Dorian had spoken of, so clearly Alexius was here or at least his cohorts were. But they had said something odd. “Do you know what the Elder One is?” he asked, toeing one of the bodies gingerly._

_“Haven’t a clue. Shall we get out of this water and dry off so we can find some answers?”_

_Ionas nodded and started forward. His bow was back in hand as they came to the entrance way, but there weren’t any more guards in the area. In fact, besides the two they had killed it almost felt like the area was deserted. “I don’t like this,” he muttered, blowing irritably at the strands of hair that kept falling on his forehead._

_“Nor do I.”_

_Ionas didn’t turn when he felt a hand on his shoulder and the heat came again. But this time it flared over all of him, almost scorching through his clothes and he heard the hiss as whatever spell Dorian used heated the water out of the fabric. “Thanks,” he said quietly, gaze moving over the area. He hadn’t been personally introduced to many dungeons outside of the one in Haven, but this looked like it was in serious disrepair and…. “Is that red lyrium?”_

_“It would appear so,” Dorian agreed, moving past him._

_Watching as the mage held out a hand to it, never quite touching it, Ionas felt his skin crawl even more. All of this was wrong, so very, very wrong. “I’m not sure I want to know how that got here. But you can’t tell me it isn’t important that it’s here.”_

_Dorian hummed softly before pulling his hand back. “Shall we? I’d rather not stay here for any longer than necessary.”_

_Ionas couldn’t agree more. He wanted this place well and truly behind him._

_“I’d like to thank you,” Dorian said suddenly as they approached a staircase._

_“What for?” He hadn’t done anything that warranted thanks. He never did anything that warranted thanks._

_“For putting your trust in me even though we’ve wound up here.”_

_“This isn’t your fault,” Ionas said absently, arrow strung to the bow as he crept up the stairs. “We’d probably be dead if you hadn’t stopped Alexius.”_

_“There is that,” Dorian conceded. “But we wouldn’t be here at all if you hadn’t trusted me to lower Alexius’ wards for your scouts. You barely knew me and yet you still put your trust in me and chose to come here over finding the Templars.”_

_Peeking around a corner, Ionas shrugged. “Mages are the better option when it comes to magic,” he muttered, signalling Dorian on when he saw the hallway was clear. “It’s a simple enough solution.”_

_“And for someone who doesn’t have magic, you certainly have an interesting view on it.”_

_His lips turned down. Was the man going to talk the entire way? If they had any element of surprise, it would be ruined by his chatter. Yet it was calming. His nerves were still strung tight at the situation but each word falling from the mage’s lips was a slight balm on what he was feeling. “I don’t fear magic,” he said quietly, “if that’s what you’re getting at.”_

_“Essentially, yes. It seems to be a foreign concept in the South and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious as to why a member of a noble family has that stance.”_

_“I’ll tell you later,” Ionas said absently, hearing the scrape of boot against stone up ahead. “Provided we survive this.”_

_“I’ll hold you to that, Herald,” Dorian murmured, staff coming up as magic filled the air._

            Dorian had gotten them back, he’d kept his word. “Five minutes,” Ionas sighed, coming back down the stairs and ignoring the grin that lit up the man’s features.

            “Excellent! She’s not too far from here.”

            Ionas fell into step with him and struggled not to sigh. His head was throbbing, telling him that he needed to rest more but there didn’t seem to be any chance that was going to happen. What had Cullen said? No rest for the wicked? It would certainly fit his family’s description of him and how he currently felt. Although, wretched might be a better word for it. If it wasn’t for the fact that someone would try to ply him with some tonic that tasted vile he would plead his headache as a reason to sit this meeting out.

            “Your head still bothering you?”

            Startled, Ionas glanced at Dorian and saw his gaze was on him. “Why do you…Ah, yes, a bit,” he admitted. “I…haven’t been sleeping well.”

            “I’d be alarmed if you were,” he said. “After all of that, I’m still waking up wondering if we actually made it back.”

            “Everyone’s still alive,” Ionas forced out, his stomach clenching as he remembered that in a single year the whole of the Inquisition had been crushed save those trapped in the castle. Soldiers and scouts alike had died upon the walls of the fortress. Josephine and Cullen…The commander had more than likely been killed in an assault on Redcliffe because he wasn’t one to stand idly by, but Ionas didn’t even want to think of what horrors had befallen their ambassador. “They weren’t so lucky in the future.”

            “True enough but that moment between dream and waking is the most dangerous, where one is still susceptible to the horrors of your nightmares.”

            He really didn’t need to be reminded of that. He had nightmares about enough things and he tried to leave them in the cabin he had been given. They had no place out in the waking world and he’d never get anything done with them following him around.

            They started up the small hill beside where the new recruits were training. The mages had set up their tents away from the soldiers but still close enough that they weren’t completely excluded. Ionas hadn’t been overly impressed with the placement of the camp for them, but he hadn’t felt like fighting Cullen on it.

_“Close enough to watch, but far enough that they can practise their magic safely.”_

            His nose wrinkled slightly at that but he pushed it aside. Cullen had his views on magic and Ionas had his. It wasn’t Ionas’ place to change his mind or demand a reason for them. He just wanted to make sure the mages were safe and looked after. It would be easier with a leader, someone that could stand as a representative for the mages and work with the leaders of the Inquisition to ensure that nothing adverse happened to mages or anyone else in Haven. Meaning, Dorian was right.

            _Not going to tell the fancy bastard that though,_ he thought sourly, glancing at Dorian out of the corner of his eye as they moved into the mage camp.

            “Ah, there she is,” Dorian said suddenly, grabbing Ionas’ arm to haul him forward faster. “She’s a dear and you’re going to love her.”

            Following where a long finger was pointing, something odd happened in Ionas’ chest as he saw the woman in question. Her back was to them, long curls spilling down her back in an almost tangled mess. He’d seen curls like that before, seen them be tossed about and twisted into braids and tails to keep them somewhat tamed. But there were surely countless women in the world that had chestnut curls and were mages.

            “Now, I haven’t mentioned any of this to her so we might get the sharp end of her temper but I promise you, she’s the right person to lead these mages.”

            She still wasn’t looking at them, deep in a conversation with the people in front of her. But the way she was standing, gesturing with one hand to another mage, was so familiar it made his heart ache. It just couldn’t be.

            “She won’t tell me where she’s from, says it isn’t important, but her name is Elora and she should turn around so I can introduce her to the Herald!” Dorian said, raising his voice to cut through whatever conversation she was having.

            Forget aching, his heart was pounding now but he refused to let himself hope. It was too much to ask for. Of all the impossible things that had happened to him, this couldn’t be one of them. But a soft noise left him when she turned to flick a look at Dorian without breaking off her conversation.

            Dorian huffed beside him but there was no irritation in the sound, only pure amusement. “The gall of that girl,” he muttered. “Keeping the Herald of Andraste himself waiting.”

            Ionas didn’t care, he needed more time. His palms were sweating inside his leather gloves and he was sure the mark on his hand was going to snap to life any second now and swallow him whole as his emotions ran all over the place. He wasn’t ready for this. He wasn’t ready for it to be her, for it to actually be her. He wasn’t ready for it to all be a coincidence, for it to be someone else.

            The mages she was talking to both nodded and she pivoted on the ball of her foot to face them, rolling her eyes at Dorian. “You’re too impatient,” she said, accent rolling over the dozen feet separating him. “If you’d told me you were coming to speak with me, I would have been ready. And didn’t anyone tell you that interrupting was rude?”

            “My manners aren’t the one in question right now. You’ve gone and kept the Herald waiting when he’s already late for a meeting but took the time to come and meet you.”

            “You’re hopeless. You know that right?” she sighed, shaking her head. “A few more minutes isn’t going to-”

            “Elora?” Ionas said softly, unable to keep quiet anymore and taking a small step forward. “Elora Trevelyan?”

            Her pale gaze moved to him and it killed him that there wasn’t any recognition in them. But it had been nearly twenty years. Why would he honestly expect her to-“Yoney?” she breathed, shock flooding her face as she stared at him.

            He opened his mouth to say something, to confirm, but the nickname hung between them and he couldn’t find any words. He didn’t remember the last time anyone had called him that, was it her? Had she been the last to say it twenty years ago? His silence wound up not mattering as she launched herself forward and slammed into him.

            A grunt left him as they toppled to the ground and his back connected with packed snow. Stars swam in front of his eyes and he wheezed as arms squeezed him tightly.

            “Oh, it is you!” she whispered, her voice thick. “I heard whispers about the Herald but I didn’t believe it was actually you! Actually my Ionas!”

            His eyes squeezed shut as his arms closed around her, pulling her tight to him. “Elora….”

            A hiccupping laugh let her but he knew she was crying. He could feel her trembling against him, her face buried in his chest. “I’ve missed you so much,” she said softly.

            Tucking his chin down, he kissed the top of her head and tried not to cry himself. “Twenty years is a long time,” he agreed.

            “Ugh, don’t say that. You’ll make me feel old,” she groaned.

            Ionas couldn’t stop his laugh and he hugged her tightly. “You are old,” he teased, “older than me at least.”

            “Ionas Maxwell Trevelyan, it is a handful of months and I will kill you if you call me old again.”

            His laughter turned rich. There, that was his cousin. “Whatever you say,” he agreed.

            “Excuse me, might the rest of us be allowed to share in the love? Or at least know what in the Void is going on?” Dorian demanded from nearby.

            They both shifted to look at him. “Are you still here?” Elora demanded tartly. “Can’t you see we’re busy?”

            “Don’t you even start,” he shot back at her, holding out a hand when she squirmed out of Ionas’ grasp. “Here I am, trying to introduce you to the man that’s going to set you on a glorious path and you steal my thunder by already knowing him. I think that deserves an explanation.”

            Pushing himself off the ground, Ionas dusted off his clothes before turning to Elora when she looked up at him. He didn’t get to ask a question when her brows dropped low over eyes that were suddenly darting over him. “Elora, what-”

            “Excuse you, Ionas, but who ever said you were allowed to get that tall?” she demanded harshly, hands slamming onto her hips. “That’s ridiculously unfair and quite rude of you!”

            He blinked at her before a startled laugh left him. “You barely reach my shoulders.”

            Her cheeks puffed out. “I had noticed,” she said tightly. “I don’t need you reminding me of this when I can see that plainly.”

            “It’s not my fault,” he protested. “I didn’t suddenly decide oh yes, let’s go through an ungodly phase where you’re constantly knocking everything over because you grew an inch overnight solely to spite your cousin.”

            Pale green eyes rolled again but they were dancing this time. “Okay fine, I guess I can forgive you that.”

            “Oh, thank you,” Ionas said dryly, not even bothering to hide his smile.

            “Cousins then?” Dorian said and drawing both of their attention. “You failed to mention you were related to the Herald, Elora.”

            “Why would I when I never told you my family name? And I wasn’t sure that it was actually my cousin.”

            “Because there’s another Ionas Trevelyan in the world?”

            She shrugged. “It’s called being careful, Dorian. You know that as well as I do. If I’d told you that the Herald was possibly my cousin, was possibly my family, who else would have heard? Who else would have tried to use that possible connection to drag my cousin further into trouble? It didn’t matter if I wanted it to be Ionas more than anything, I will never hurt my cousin like that. I will not be used as a weapon or bargaining chip against him ever.”

            Ionas’ heart ached. Twenty years and nothing had changed. They’d been thick as thieves as children, the few months separating them in age the reason their parents had put them together to play and bonding them further since their siblings were all so much older than they were. If she hadn’t been sent to the Circle, they’d have never been apart.

            “But an impromptu family reunion wasn’t why you came,” Elora said, her gaze swinging between him and Dorian. “Why are you in my neck of the woods if you’re supposed to be in a meeting?”

            “Oh, it’s your lucky day,” Dorian drawled. “Not only do you get to be reunited with your cousin, but you also get the vaunted position of leader of the mages because there is no way anyone is going to refuse the Herald’s cousin taking control of the rebels.”

            Ionas stared at Dorian, his jaw slackening slightly. Maker’s mercy! There were better ways to phrase it than that!

            “…What?” Elora said flatly and Ionas considered running straight to the Chantry to avoid the inevitable explosion that was about to happen.


End file.
